1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a clathrate hydrate with latent heat storing effects and technologies associated with the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a clathrate hydrate with enhanced latent heat storing effects, a process for producing the clathrate hydrate and an apparatus therefor, a latent heat storing medium comprising the clathrate hydrate as a composition, a method of increasing the amount of latent heat of the clathrate hydrate and a processing apparatus for increasing the amount of latent heat of the clathrate hydrate.
2. Description of the Related Art
A latent heat storing medium finds applications in the efficient use of thermal energy. There are many examples of actual applications thereof such as a heat storing material or thermal transport medium for use in air conditioning and a cold insulator for use in the preservation of fresh food quality. Clathrate hydrates comprising a quaternary ammonium compound as a guest (or guest molecules) and water molecules as a host (or hose molecules) are known as providing such a latent heat storing medium or a composition thereof (with respect to the clathrate hydrates in substantially solid form and in slurry form obtained by dispersing the solid in water, reference can be made to Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKOKU Publication No. 57-35224 and Japanese Patent No. 3309760, respectively).
Hereinafter, the “clathrate hydrate comprising a quaternary ammonium compound as a guest and water molecules as a host” may be simply referred to as the “clathrate hydrate of a quaternary ammonium compound” or “clathrate hydrate comprising a quaternary ammonium compound as a guest.”
Generally, with respect to the latent heat storing medium, the larger the amount of heat stored per weight (heat storage density), the preferably higher the heat storage efficiency and thermal transport efficiency. This is true even when the latent heat storing medium or composition thereof is based on a clathrate hydrate of a quaternary ammonium compound. From this viewpoint, such a clathrate hydrate with higher heat storage density is desired.